Kerala youth, who joined ISIS, killed in drone strike in Afghanistan

In a strange twist of fate, a youth, who went missing from Kasaragod, Kerala, to join a banned terror outfit has reportedly been killed. Hafeesudheen TK died in a drone strike while fighting in Afghanistan for the ISIS. The family of the deceased got the information through a WhatsApp text sent by his friend Aqmajeed, who is also feared to have joined the terror outfit.

The text reads: “We are waiting for our turn…in shaa Allah.”

The text messages that also quote verses from the Muslim Holy Book of Quran conveyed that the body had been buried.

The family of the youth believes the information is credible even though there is no word from the central or state government to confirm the authenticity of the texts or his demise.

“Hafees has been killed in a drone strike yesterday. We consider him ‘shuhada’ (martyred) and Allah knows best,” a text sent by Aqmajeed to Hafees’s mother read.

Barely into his twenties, Hafeesudheen and a group of 16 youths made news headlines in July last year when they went missing from the state. It was later reported that they had joined the banned terror outfit, ISIS.

The group of missing persons from Kasaragod district left the state on June 6, 2016 under the pretext of going to pursue Islamic Studies in neighbouring Sri Lanka. Their families received constant messages from them since they left their hometown. In an earlier text to his mother, Hafeesudheen had requested them to join him: “We have decided to lead a holy life,” read the message. “Mother should convince father to join us.” [Translated from Malayalam].